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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24620275">Marlie and Ewan</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Victoriadelgado/pseuds/Victoriadelgado'>Victoriadelgado</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>a hope divided, an extraordinary union, loyal league, the loyal league</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 10:22:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>703</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24620275</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Victoriadelgado/pseuds/Victoriadelgado</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Marlie and Ewan’s story has been on my heart for the last few days, and I just want to read more stories about their domestic bliss. Alyssa Cole writes stories full of characters that inspire heart-eye emojis and also endless swooning--and I don't even like historical fiction.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Marlie Lynch/Ewan McCall</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Marlie and Ewan</h2></a>
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    <p>When he hears a noise in their home at three in the morning, Ewan reaches for Marlie before he is even completely awake, and her absence from his bed pulls him fully from sleep. She doesn’t love that he keeps a shotgun by their bed but, even if he <em>were</em> a man of faith, Ewan wouldn't place his in the morality of strangers, let alone potential intruders, as a white man married to a black woman in these times. He relaxes when he identifies her laboratory as the source of the sound, where he finds her seated at the counter, holding a mortar in one hand while she grinds seeds to dust with the pestle in her other.</p><p>Sometimes, the intensity of Ewan's gaze seems to compel Marlie's to him but, other times, when she is too distracted to notice, he allows himself to drink his fill of sights like that of a silver moon lighting her golden brown skin. He can't imagine how ordinary people survive the overwhelming weight of desire, day in and day out, for things much less significant than Marlie. It makes him wonder that simply the sight of her can calm his restless mind, and the thought of losing her either to harm or her own will to leave can set it racing again--it is for this reason that he at once anticipates and dreads fatherhood. He will teach their children what little french he understands, so that when she is ready, Marlie can share memories of their grandmother with them. Sure, they're married, but he is always finding new ways to tether himself to her, in case of emergency. He is not arrogant enough to assume that her time with him will assuage her lifetime of self-doubt, but he will always be there to remind her that he loves her.</p><p>Her back isn’t even completely to him, but she is deep in thought and he is a quieter man than most, so she startles and almost drops the pestle when his arms come around her.</p><p>“Ewan!” She says, first gasping at the fright and then at the pleasure of his mouth on her neck. “One would think I would be accustomed to your stealth by now.”</p><p>“Fortunately, we have an entire lifetime together for you to adapt.”</p><p> </p><p>She amuses him by trying to sneak up on him sometimes. He never even pretends to be surprised, always reaching for her before she is even completely by his side.</p><p>“I wish I could surprise you, for once. Perils of marriage to an officer, I suppose.” She says, sliding her arms around him.</p><p>He doesn’t bother to tell her that his military experience has nothing to do with why he is always so attuned to her presence. Instead, he pulls her closer to kiss her curls and inhale the scent of wisteria.</p><p>“If it’s any consolation, I am always surprised that you have yet to give in to some dormant desire to leave me.” His tone is dry, as usual, but because he is hers, she knows he’s teasing. However, she also knows that her fears have given him ample reason to question her permanence in his life, so she doesn’t feed the joke.</p><p>“There is absolutely nowhere that I would rather be than here with you.” She says, and she can tell he’s pleased by the color that spreads across his face.</p><p>He kisses her cheek and her nose and her mouth, because she is his and he is hers and so he can. It is a marvel that anyone ever thinks him to be cold, when all he ever does is surround her with warmth.</p><p>“Come back to bed.” She says, “It’s late.”</p><p>“Technically, it’s early.”</p><p>He smiles at the roll of her eyes. Such is their relationship: he is usually not wrong, but she is also always right. All pedantic humor aside, the sleep-husky sound of her voice as she runs her hands down his chest and lower leads the list of a million reasons that being in bed with Marlie is preferable to being awake doing anything else. As it turns out, when presented with logic and sound reasoning, Ewan McCall is very easily persuaded.</p>
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